AFT gets new chief, 10 posts still vacant

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 3

After remaining vacant for 10 months, the post of the Chairman of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) has finally been filled with the appointment of Justice Virender Singh, former Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court, today.

The appointment comes in the wake of the Supreme Court taking cognisance of a letter by the AFT Bar Association to the Chief Justice of India pointing out that work at the tribunal had virtually come to a standstill due to non-appointment of judicial members. 

At present 10 out of 17 posts of judicial members are vacant and, consequently, out of the AFT’s eight Benches located across India, those at Chandigarh, Chennai, Kochi, Kolkata and Guwahati are non-functional. Courts were being held at these places occasionally, with judicial members from Delhi, Jabalpur and Lucknow Benches being deputed for a few days temporarily.

The AFT hears cases pertaining to court martial, service matters, promotions, pay, pensions and disability benefits. Non-functional Benches have adversely affected defence litigants. More than 16,000 cases are said to be pending before the AFT. At the time of AFT’s establishment in 2009, the number of such cases pending before the High Courts was 9,449. The Bar Association had also pointed out the lack of proper judicial review of AFT orders. While civilians aggrieved by the orders of the Central Administrative Tribunal could approach the High Courts within their states, defence employees and their families were not allowed to challenge any orders of the AFT except in the SC and that too only in cases involving points of law of general public importance.